I have been writing for the Milwaukee Community Journal for a few years now. Many of you know I was a Milwaukee Police Officer for a little over 30 years before I retired in 2010. I then took a job with the Milwaukee Bucks basketball team as head of security for 8 years before retiring a second time in 2018. I usually talk about a variety of crime related issues whenever I write. Most of my posts are usually about up-to-date issues but sometimes I also like to go back and discuss things in the past. Talking about my early days as an officer I believe are important at times and give people insight on how the department has changed or stayed the same. I entered the police academy in July of 1979. The training was tough, hard several months graduating in December.
Many white officers had relatives, like fathers, brothers, uncles, and others on the job who could give them a heads up on what to expect on the job. The same could not be said for most of us black officers on the job. This was a foreign, different experience for most of us. There were not many black officers on the job at that time. But the black officers on the department would take us under their wing and try to guide us along giving us advice when needed. The LOM, League of Martin, a black officer’s organization, was very important and really helped us a lot. I will discuss more of this off and on in some of my future posts about my career.
I don’t know if many of you remember but that first year 1979-1980 winter is one that I never will forget as long as I live. Those are the days when it snowed so much that the snowbanks were up to 9 to 10 feet at the corners. The snow was so bad that year they had to call the National Guard out to help the city out. City plows, you know the large garbage trucks, were getting stuck in the snow, and the National guard had to help pull them out. You could not pass on city streets because cars were stuck everywhere. Do you remember? In the area of 27th and North Avenue, in the vacant lots, they were stacking towed cars on top of each other just to clear the streets. Some were stacked 7, 8 and up to 10 feet high. Most of our squads were also getting stuck and we would have to drive to the corner of a block. Then get out and walk the rest of the way to the home we were going to. That is a winter I will never forget on my first year right out of the academy. But you know what we did pull together and survive a very tough time.
Fast & Furious Wednesday
Unsolved Homicides Are a Threat
When people look at crime, they usually look at things like armed robberies, car jackings, sexual assaults, thefts and of course homicides. Homicide is universally considered the worst crime out there. The homicide rate in Milwaukee has gone up the past few years and the overall clearance rate. Years ago, Milwaukee had a clearance rate on homicides of around 80 percent. Just a few years ago it was in the low 70s. But now the homicide clearance rate is around the low 50s. What does that mean to the citizens of Milwaukee. It means you have a good chance of getting away with murder. The people committing these crimes are getting younger and younger. Many are from disputes and arguments that get out of hand quickly. A few times a month you hear about a road rage incident either on the street or expressway. You can accidentally cut someone off while driving and lose your life because someone is upset.
I am mentioning this because now it appears we have citizens trying to do follow up on the homicide crimes of their loved ones. A lady today was on the news stating she was conducting follow up on the murder of her baby brother since the police were not doing anything. She continued, “I know who the suspect is, and I have turned the information over to the police”. There is video of a possible suspect, but he hasn’t been identified yet. This lady knocked on doors interviewing people just like the police would do. The Milwaukee Police Department homicide unit has been down numerous detectives from the past few years. It is hard to keep up with the new homicides, let alone try to follow up on the older cases. There are many families hurting in the city wondering if their cases will ever be solved. This lady said I have found what the police could not and hopefully now there can be an arrest.
You know it is getting kind of bad when regular people feel they must investigate because the police are so busy. For one thing it is dangerous because anything can happen. You might be putting yourself in the cross hairs of the suspect if you get too close to them. I do understand because if my loved one was killed, I might feel the same way. Now I have mentioned this in the past before. The department needs to hire back ex homicide detectives to follow up on these unsolved cases. A fresh set of eyes could maybe find something that was overlooked. I believe more public exposure could hopefully open some of these cases. So, let’s help some of these families and give them some form of closure. There are people out there that know something that could solve some of theses cases. Some of them are scared but others would probably come forward if they could remain anonymous. In 2024 could we try to solve a few more of these cases?
Can We Drive Safer?
Police Chief Jeffrey Norman was injured in a car accident earlier this week. He was a passenger in the police squad driven by a 56-year-old male officer. Their vehicle was struck from behind at a traffic light at 68th and Silver Springs Drive. Witnesses at the scene state the chief got out of the squad and set on the curb. One subject asked the chief was he okay. The chief responded that his back was hurt, and he was holding his head. Both were conveyed to the hospital for treatment. The striking driver did stay on the scene and was cooperating with the investigation. The chief was just leaving the District Four police station attending a reckless driving meeting and news conference with the mayor and several aldermen. The Milwaukee County Sheriff is investigating the accident. Mayor Johnson stated, “we did not need this type of reminder that all drivers need to slow down and increase caution on our roadways.”
One reason for the news conference was a crash that killed three women last week on the northside. A vehicle ran a flashing red light before the collision. The suspect was arrested. This was the fifth fatal crash in the past week or so. A total of seven people has died in those crashes. Officials at the news conference attributed the recent deaths to reckless driving and speeding. At the news conference Chief Norman said work by city officials continues to make a difference in reckless driving. He also stated everyone in the community needed to be involved in addressing the problem. Another reason for the news conference was to expand the law signed this past spring in Madison regarding towing vehicles. The vehicle must be owned by the driver and that driver must have outstanding fines related to reckless driving. Milwaukee officials want those restrictions removed. “It signals that the city’s intent to treat reckless driving as a criminal act deserving of consequences,” Common Council President Jose Perez said on expanding the towing law.
Reckless driving has emerged as one of the city’s pressing safety issues. Deaths and injuries have gone up in the past several years. In 2021, 67 people were killed in crashes, in 2022, 77 deaths and so far, this year 67. The mayor added, “we cannot, and we will not, accept the current frequency of reckless driving that we are seeing in our community”.
Do You Believe?
Does faith have anything to do with how you turn out in your life? Is there a big difference between police officers and the people who they arrest? I think we have all heard stories about crooked cops in various cities. You will find good and bad people in almost any profession that you look at. I worked in internal affairs I would say most officers are good, hard-working, honest people. But honestly there are some people who should not be police officers. I supervised numerous investigations, and some people should have picked other professions.
Adam Procell is Interim Director of Partners in Hope. This is a faith-based organization that helps people who have been incarcerated get back on their feet. Now this might sound a little strange, but Adam got together with some MPD officers to plan an event. They decided to go sky jumping from an airplane in Jefferson. Adam states “he attempts to find common ground with people”. “He continues we are supposed to be enemies according to some people”. A female officer in attendance stated, “somebody has to make that first leap of faith”. Adam responded,” it’s hard to hate another group when you are 10,000 feet up in the air”. There was a pairing of 10 officers with 10 formally incarcerated individuals. Mr. Babovich, who owns the Wisconsin Skydiving Center, stated,” this is a bonding experience that takes away from the boundaries that we have”. He continues,” when that door opens up there, they are all the same”. MPD Lt Michael Dix, stated “sometimes it takes faith to overcome what’s in front of us”. He continues,” here on the ground it is easy to lose site on what we have in common”.
Lt Dix added,” when we start to paint others with a broad brush, and they paint us it’s harmful to everyone”. Adam added,” society states do the crime, do the time, and I understand that”. “But after that point if someone cannot get a job, or live in a certain area, it may push them into the darker areas of society”. Sergeant Amy Rivera stated,” this holds a new meaning to finding common ground”. Each officer was paired with a person from Adam’s group for the jump down. Adam stated the most exciting part of the day wasn’t putting his faith in a police officer jumping out of a plane”. “It was watching the police officers and the formally incarcerated bond after the jumps”. “It was beautiful just to see people come together and be human”. The people who put on this event would like to do another one in the future.
There are a lot of crazy things going on in the world today, so this event was amazing in my opinion. I would never have thought something like this could have been put together. Maybe there is hope for us after all?
Save Yourself Defensive Driving
Many of us drive a vehicle, be it a car, truck, SUV, or motorcycle every day to get around the city. Most of us follow the rules of the road and drive the way you were taught to drive. Did you ever watch people driving out on the street and wonder how did that person ever get a driver’s license? Yes, I bet you did because I wonder about that quite a lot every day. How can a person who once had safe driving habits turn into the drivers we see on the roads today? During the past week or so I observed drivers throughout my journeys and wondered how did we get here. You have heard of the term defensive driving before, right? As a new driver, back in the days, I never realized how important that term was. You must watch out for the other driver every time you are out driving. Just a few days ago I was eastbound on West Concordia Avenue driving toward West Fond Du Lac Avenue. I Had the right of way at the next intersection, as the other driver would have a stop sign. When I got to that intersection the other driver, north bound, blew through the intersection going at least fifty miles per hour. I turned hard left at the last minute just avoiding a bad collision. That driver, of course, took off after almost hitting me.
I do not think everyone knows what the turn signals on a vehicle are made for. You are supposed to use these signals to let other people around you know what you are about to do. How about I turn left here? I am now going to change lanes. Have you observed cars weaving in and out of traffic, changing lanes, and not ever using their signals to let other people know? That is what causes many accidents when people do not know what other people are doing. This is where reckless driving and other behaviors come in. Later in the week I was around 60th and Capitol Drive stopped at a red light. The vehicle in the right lane initially stopped but shortly thereafter the vehicle went through the red traffic signal. During this past week I have observed at least five vehicles go through red lights like this. Are people really in that much of a hurry to get where they are going? What gets me is that many of these vehicles only go a few more blocks before pulling over and are at their destination. Many are going to places like gas stations, grocery stores, smoke shops, etc. Do those few seconds of minutes really matter that much? I would say no.
In a perfect world everyone would obey the rules of the road and there would be no reckless driving, plus hardly any accidents. But, of course, this is no perfect world, and you must drive in a defensive manner to make sure you get where you are going safely. I know most of us are doing this every day because if not, there would be accidents all over the place. So please remember that us good, legally driving people, are helping to keep the city streets safe for the most of us. Lock your car doors, put on your seatbelt, and drive at a safe speed, looking out for those folks who are short on time. The life you save, maybe your own.
District Two Open House
The Milwaukee Police Department has had two open houses at various locations over the past several days. The first was at the Safety Academy where police and fire personnel train for their profession. The second one was at District Two at 3rd and Lincoln Avenue which I attended. This was my first open house, and I was pleasantly impressed by the large, attendant crowds. There was a sign-up table at the front of the district where you received a ticket was a raffle and a second ticket for food. Yes, can you believe it is free food. Once you received your ticket everyone lined up at the front door for a tour of the station. Many of the families who came also had their children with them. Once in the lobby there was an officer giving a general history of the station. Then we next went inside the roll call room to see where officers start their shift every day.
The sergeant advised that officers check in here before their shift every day. They normally get a briefing on important items that occurred the previous shift and certain things to look out for. There are items like wanted people, cars that may be sought in robberies, and missing people. Eventually all the officers line up and are checked by the sergeant to make sure you have all your equipment and are ready for the street. Your firearm is one of the items that are checked during this inspection. Then the officers go out to their squads and check their equipment like lights and siren, shotgun, flashlights, etc. After the roll call room, we had a stop at the booking room where all people who are arrested are booked into the district. The officer advised all prisoners to be booked on the red bench before being put into a cell.
Our group next went out into the garage where boys were getting free haircuts and girls were getting their hair styled. Once outside There were numerous tables lined up with a variety of things like insurance, health agencies, car repair shops, etc. In addition, in the parking lot was the bomb truck, trucks for the horses plus the horses themselves, officer bicycles and bounce houses for the kids to play inside. I asked the captain did all the districts have an open house like this. He said no we plus the academy are the only ones. I advised him all the districts should do this. He advised it takes a lot of effort to put this on and some other locations don’t have the time.
From my observations the people really loved this event, and a few told me they come almost every year, and this is the 14th year this was held. This really gives the average citizen some inner workings in the department and what goes on within the department. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved. I will ask the chief about expanding this to other locations the next time I see him.
Restorative Justice
I attended a very nice question and answer period at Marquette University today led by former Judge Derek Mosley Director of Marquette University Law School-Lubar Center for Public Policy Research and Civic Education. His special guest was retired Judge Mary Triggiano, Director of the Andrew Center for Restorative Justice and Adjunct Professor of Law. The main event today was about Restorative Justice and how does it work. Just a little about Judge Triggiano and her background. She was born in Racine and had four brothers and sisters. She attended catholic grade and high schools before going to University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. Eventually she attended the University of Wisconsin law school. Governor Jim Doyle appointed her as judge where she recently retired.
Restorative Justice is rooted in the belief that everyone has a role to play in addressing harm, it largely relies on people talking and listening carefully to one another. It is a set of principles and practices that create a different approach to dealing with crime and its impacts. It works to address the dehumanization frequently experienced by people in the traditional criminal justice system. Instead of looking at the act as a violation of the law, restorative justice sees this action as a violation of people and relationships. It seeks to look at the harmful impact of crime. It then determines what can be done to repair that harm while holding the person who caused it accountable for his or her actions. The offender must except responsibility and act to repair the harm done. Outcomes seeks to repair the harm and address reasons for the offense. But also reduce the likelihood of re-offense. It looks at results on how successfully the harmed is repaired rather than what punishment is melted out in the traditional setting.
Victims and survivors are the most important people in this system. In this system victims are empowered to participle more fully than in the traditional system. The community also plays an important role in this process. They help to establish a standard of conduct, helping to hold an offender accountable, and provide support to the parties involved. This leads to opportunities to help repair the harm that has occurred. The opportunity to express the harm a victim has experienced, full participation in decision making, and support from the community all aid in the healing in the aftermath of a serious crime.
Restorative justice is not good for some cases. It is a voluntary process and both the harmed party and responsible party need to engage willingly. Only effective when the responsible party takes responsibility. No guilt is determined. For this process you need well-trained facilitators who first take the time to meet individually with all involved parties. Thay need to determine that no further harm will be caused by bringing those involved together in dialogue. In the United States it has been used for minor offenses or juveniles. Research shows it could be used for more serious crimes. Finally, some restorative justice programs accept direct community referrals, allowing the criminal justice system to be bypassed entirely.
Police Chief for A Day
It’s no secret that crime has been an issue in the city of Milwaukee so far this year. I don’t have to go into the particulars because if you listen to the news, it’s on the tv almost every night. Sometimes I think what I would do if I was the Chief of Police. I believe most of my readers know I retired at the rank of Deputy Inspector of Police. That is one step over a Captain just for reference. I held this rank for seven years and I supervised the second and third shift over the entire department. I filed a report so the Chief and his command staff would know what occurred overnight. During any night I would respond to shootings, homicides, sexual assaults, armed robberies, missing children, bad car accidents, squad pursuits, house fires, etc. Sometimes I would hold a news conference if the press had responded to the scene.
Let’s imagine I could be Chief for a short time frame, what would I do? First, I would cancel all the off days for police officers for one month. That means the only people off would be those on vacation. This would put numerous extra police officers on the street for those 30 days. We normally use our large bread truck type wagons to convey prisoners downtown. A large wagon would go out on the northside of town and one on the southside. Three to four squads would be assigned to each wagon. The squads would be assigned to pick up all underage juveniles out on the street. The juveniles would be conveyed to a Boys and Girls Club until their parents came to pick them up. Citations would be issued to the juvenile and the parents also. If parents could not pick up the child a squad would eventually take them home.
In addition, I would ask Sheriff Ball if we could use some of her squads to help us out. The State Patrol would be notified to see if they could send some squads down to help patrol the expressway while Sheriff squads helped us out. We could pretty much blanket the hot spots where most of the crime is going on. For one summer we had lots of calls in the area of Hopkins and Hampton. So, we put a squad to stay in that area for the entire shift. The only way they would leave that area is if an officer was calling for help. During these high crime periods we need high visibility of squads throughout the city. People that want to commit crimes need to know it will not be that easy. We must make it hard for them and make them think about it for a minute. A lot of folks thinking about committing crime are lazy and will not go out of their way, if things appear too hard.
So those are my plans. Some people will be mad and say we are over policing the city. People I believe will look on the positive side and realize we are just trying to get a handle and take back our city. We can’t let the bad guys win because then we all lose.
On Any Given Sunday
What do a lot of people do on Sunday mornings around the city? While growing up my brothers and sisters started going to this church on the corner of 9th and Highland Avenue. It was called Trinity Lutheran Evangelical Church and we started by going to what they called vacation bible school. Eventually my parents came and on a typical day we would all go to Sunday school then church almost every Sunday. This pretty much became routine, and this was always part of growing up. Later when I met my wife, Paula, she had been raised as a Catholic growing up. After marriage we decided to go to church on any given Sunday. We would go back and forth between the churches during the month. Normally after church we would go out to eat breakfast before going home. This was a nice quiet day that we kind of always looked forward to.
This past Sunday we decided to go to church, and it was my turn to go to Trinity on this day. Church starts at 10am and Paula and I were there about 15 minutes before the service started. We greeted everyone as usual and took our seats for the service. Normally I like for us to sit a few rows from the back of the church. The service currently is held in the basement since we had a very bad fire a few years ago and the church almost burned down. It was all over the news historic Trinty burns in downtown Milwaukee. The church is being repaired and still has a long way to go before it is complete. As the service was going on a man with a hood over most of his head sit right behind us. My wife pulled her purse closer and said I don’t feel comfortable with that man sitting behind us. I told her don’t worry everything should be okay.
After the sermon we passed the plate and people were putting church envelopes with money and checks inside. After I put my envelope in the basket, I heard someone holler from the rear and observed the man reach inside the basket grabbing a hand full of envelopes before running out of the church. He almost knocked down a man after the theft and running. I grabbed my phone and got off after him, calling 911 as I kept him in sight. I gave the operator a description and advised I was following the suspect and needed police service. As the man walked, he was talking to himself plus opening the envelope up. He ripped them open and threw them on the ground as he walked. Of course, he was looking for money as the checks were all over the ground. A fellow church member came with his car, and we followed waiting for the police to arrive.
The police did arrive, and the suspect was arrested for strongarm robbery. It was kind of ironic but right where he was arrested, I looked at the ground and there were the two checks I put in church today. The police took pictures and back tracked the route to try and find the other envelopes he tore open and threw on the ground. It turned out to be a crazy Sunday, but no one was hurt and that was the main thing for me. You can always get more money but not another life. Another moral I guess is always listen to your wife. Later that afternoon we went out to the State Fair for the last day. You can never tell what’s going to happen on any given Sunday.
Youth and Violence
One hundred kids, age 17 and under, have been shot in Milwaukee, the first 7 months of this year. Of that total thirteen have died. This past weekend two kids were shot within 12 hours of each other. First a 14-year-old girl was shot and then a little later a 11-year-old boy shot a 7-year-old boy after they were playing with a gun they found. One group is trying to change all of this. The United Neighborhood Center of Milwaukee is giving away gun locks. They are free for anyone who asks. Renee Logee, the executive director of United Neighborhood Center of Milwaukee, states “gun locks can save lives.” She continues “this is really an important tool in reducing these accidental shootings with children.” They are giving out 1000-gun locks at this time. The last two kids found an unsecured gun in their home and started playing with it. The 11-year-old ended up shooting the 7-year-old. Logee continues “this is heart breaking but we can do something about this.” “No one ever thinks it is going to happen to them that’s why it’s called an accident”. Her organization is partnering with the city of Milwaukee and the Office of Violence Prevention to give out the locks. Just walk up and ask for a lock without any questions. They are free and available at 10 locations throughout the city.
Recently a news conference was held at Sherman Park to address the violence occurring within the youth of Milwaukee. Mothers in attendance stated they want to see a change in how violence is addressed. One lady in attendance runs a support group for children experiencing danger or loss from violence. She sees herself as a voice for Black mothers. Also in attendance were Sheriff Denita Ball, Police Chief Jeffery Norman, and County Board Supervisor Felesia Martin. The common theme was that parents need to take more responsibility for their children. This is especially important when kids are exposed to gang violence. They have a commitment to keep kids safe, but they stated it starts at home. Chief Norman again stated this cannot be done with first responders alone. Public safety is everyone’s responsibility. Supervisor Martin talked about how much Sherman Park has changed over the past several years. Social media is affecting our youth. Another suggestion stated that the faith-based community needs to step up and help out. James Barnett, Director of Public Relations for the Milwaukee Sheriff’s Department, talked about the app Atlas One. It allows citizens to make anonymous tips about crime, even if they just suspect something. It is available for all smart phones. It can help authorities stay on top of threats.
Some of our hottest days are coming up with lots of activities going on throughout the city. We all need to pull together and try to get a handle wherever we can. You might need to go outside your comfort zone to help. A man in Sherman Park stated he tried to break up an argument among youth in the park. There were a few other adults there but no one else stepped in. Eventually someone was shot and seriously injured. As adults we need to set an example for the youth, they are watching us.